Healthcare & Social Care Northern Ireland

Meet RQIA Minimum Care Standards

How to meet the Minimum Care Standards that RQIA uses to assess your health or social care service in Northern Ireland. Covers identifying your applicable standards, self-assessment, gathering evidence, and addressing common shortfalls.

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Every RQIA-registered service in Northern Ireland must meet the Minimum Care Standards published by the Department of Health. These standards set out what RQIA expects to see when it inspects your service. Falling short of them can result in requirements, conditions on your registration, or enforcement action.

The standards are organised by service type. A residential care home has different standards from a domiciliary care agency or a dental practice. Your first task is to identify which set of standards applies to your registered service, then systematically assess your compliance against each standard.

How to meet the standards

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    1. Identify your applicable Minimum Care Standards

    Download the Minimum Care Standards document for your service type from the Department of Health NI website or from RQIA. Each document contains numbered standards grouped by theme (e.g., management, staffing, care delivery, environment). Read the full document before beginning your assessment.

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    2. Conduct a self-assessment against each standard

    Work through every standard in the document and assess whether your service currently meets it. Be honest in your assessment. For each standard, note whether you are fully compliant, partially compliant, or non-compliant. Record the evidence you have to demonstrate compliance and identify any gaps.

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    3. Gather and organise your evidence

    RQIA inspectors assess compliance through evidence. For each standard, ensure you have documentation readily accessible. Common evidence includes policies and procedures, staff training records, supervision and appraisal records, care plans and risk assessments, complaints and incidents logs, maintenance records, fire safety records, and quality audit reports.

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    4. Address gaps and shortfalls

    For any standard where you are not fully compliant, create an action plan with specific steps, responsible persons, and target completion dates. Prioritise areas that directly affect the safety and wellbeing of service users. Common shortfalls include incomplete staff training records, outdated policies, gaps in care plan reviews, and incomplete maintenance logs.

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    5. Embed ongoing compliance monitoring

    Meeting the standards is not a one-off exercise. Establish regular internal audits against the Minimum Care Standards, at least quarterly. Use RQIA's annual quality report template as a framework for ongoing self-assessment. Address any new shortfalls promptly rather than waiting for an RQIA inspection to identify them.

Common areas of non-compliance

Based on published RQIA inspection reports, the most frequently identified shortfalls across service types include:

  • Staff training and supervision: Incomplete mandatory training records, gaps in supervision schedules, or lack of evidence that training has been applied in practice.
  • Care planning: Care plans not reviewed at required intervals, risk assessments not updated following incidents or changes in need, or care plans not reflecting the individual's current needs and preferences.
  • Governance and quality monitoring: Absence of regular audits, failure to act on audit findings, or lack of a documented quality improvement plan.
  • Record keeping: Incomplete or illegible records, records not stored securely, or failure to retain records for the required period.
  • Environment: Premises maintenance issues, inadequate infection prevention and control measures, or insufficient storage for equipment and supplies.

What happens if you do not meet the standards

If an RQIA inspection identifies non-compliance with Minimum Care Standards, the inspector will make requirements (actions you must take) and may also make recommendations (actions you should take). Requirements must be addressed within the timescale set by RQIA and will be followed up at the next inspection.

Persistent or serious non-compliance can lead to enforcement action, including conditions on your registration, failure to comply notices, or proceedings to cancel your registration.

Standards and guidance